Lucrative jobs in Malaysia

A survey done by a recruitment agency, a popular employment services company in Malaysia, had the following results:

Top five highest paying Fresh Graduates positions

Industry	Specialization	Average Salary (50% percentile)
Semiconductor/Wafer Fabrication	Bachelor’s Degree/Professional Degree/Post Graduate Diploma in Engineering	RM 2400
Banking	Bachelor’s Degree/Professional Degree/Post Graduate Diploma in Computer Science/Information Technology	RM 2100
Manufacturing	Bachelor’s Degree/Professional Degree/Post Graduate Diploma in Engineering	RM 2089
Science & Technology/Aerospace/Biotechnology	Bachelor’s Degree/Professional Degree/Post Graduate Diploma in Engineering	RM 2050
Electrical & Electronic	Bachelor’s Degree/Professional Degree/Post Graduate Diploma in Sciences	RM 2050

Please be reminded that, these figures denote an average. Variations will occur depending on the size of the company, job demands and other perks that are packaged into the pay.

You should be made aware that, these are the figures you should be quoting for when applying for the job. I have seen job applications from fresh graduate demanding, and I mean demanding 50% to 100% more than the figures above. Either they think too highly of themselves, or ignorant of current market value. However, just in case you are interested to know, where your job is leading towards, in terms of pay, the agency also provided the following results:

Top five highest paying Senior Management positions

Industry	Specialization	Average Salary (50% percentile)
Manufacturing	IT/Computers	RM10390
Services	IT/Computers	RM 9950
Oil/Gas/Petroleum	Marketing and Business Development	RM9604
Telecommunication	Non-Technical Sales	RM9500
Financial Services/Securities/Insurance	Human Resources /Administration/Personnel	RM9345

As a comparison, how do we stand up against the Americans.

The best-paying jobs in America

Occupation Annual salary (USD) Avg. hours per week Surgeons $189,590 63 Anesthesiologists $181,420 60 Obstetricians, gynecologists $179,640 57 Internists, general $158,350 60 Pediatricians, general $142,360 53 Family, general practitioners $136,260 54 Psychiatrists $135,220 46 CEOs $134,960 Varies greatly Dentists $133,350 37.6

Source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics

You will notice that the surveys done in Malaysia does not cover the medical profession. Rightly so! The medical profession is a highly specialized profession with requiring special aptitude and capabilities. Many do not have them. I am one of them.

Yes, it would be nice to have that extra money. Who wouldn’t? Furthermore, why would I be going into a job that hardly pays?

True, we all could use that extra cash to help us in our daily and monthly expenses, like paying for the house, car, bills and other expenses. Including some luxury indulgence every now and then, like traveling overseas.

Try not to choose a job solely on how much money it makes.

Remember the saying “money can’t buy love or happiness”? Well, the reason the saying has been around for a long time is because it is true.

The point I would like to make is, and it has been in my previous 2 – 3 articles that, “If you like what you do, you end up doing it very well, you get noticed, and you will eventually get paid”.

As mentioned earlier, you need to have the right attitude to get into a specific profession. Like a doctor. Or if you are not good in mathematics, like me, you might want to stay away from becoming an engineer, architect, physicist and etc.

Or if language is not your thing or you do not have the gift of the speech, maybe you should not try to become a TV newscast, a TV host or a radio DJ. I am not saying don’t go for it. You can. Maybe you need extra help and training to get you there. But, be aware of what your strengths and weaknesses are.

Take a simple test. If I ask you to write or tell me something you are interested in, what topic or area that you can go on writing or speaking effortlessly, passionately and with a glow on your face that others reading or listening to you can tell you are really into it?

Think about it, shouldn’t you be doing the thing you love. You are going to spend an enormous amount of time, between 8 – 10 hours a day, 5 – 6 days a week (sometimes more) doing this job you are in. If you can find a job that has some promise of a career path, it pays well AND you love doing it, well go for it.

But if not, consider carefully the decision you have to make because the best-paid jobs are those that pay off not only in money, but also in satisfaction and happiness.

Job toppers in Malaysia

Malaysia is one of the growing economies among the Asian countries. This Southern East Asian country is spread over an area of 329,845sq km with Kuala Lumpur as its capital. The recession had slowed the economic growth of most of the countries and many lost their jobs. The gross GDP of the country is thought to rise progressively as many companies are back on the hiring track.

Services sector is the major pillar of strength for Malaysia. Some of the highly paying jobs in this part of the country that can be the scope for earning money for both its own citizens as well as international candidates are :

Petronas Towers, Malaysia, once the tallest building in the world

Network Engineers

Network engineer is one of the best jobs to look for the people who belong to IT sectors. A certified course in networking from a recognized institution or organization is a must as it will prove ones proficiency level to the prospective organization. People specializing in MCSE (Microsoft certified system engineer), MCP (Microsoft certified professional) or CCNA (Cisco certified network associate) do have a good chance of getting a job that pays well.

However people with some more specialized technicalities like the CCNP or the CCIE are paid fairly good amounts because of their specializations which are mostly looked for by most of the IT companies. A good certified network engineer can expect to get pay between MYR12000 – 13000 which is a fair good start.

MALAYSIA MUSIC VIDEO

Sales and Marketing Professionals

Sales and Marketing is another highly paying profession not only in Malaysia but throughout the world. There is a cut throat competition in this area but when it comes to salary one can just sit and relax as this field is the most lucrative one. There is no limit to a sales professional earning as one not only earns the basic salary but earns a lot of commission coming in with each client one can target and sell the product. The basics of this job lies in the art of communication so an individual having a good command over communication and a well convincing power can fetch him good salaries.

Jobs in the Oil and Gas Industry

The energy sources like the oil and gas fields also pays handsome amounts. This field is better suited for individuals who are ready to relocate to different destinations as this opportunity calls for a lot of exploration and search as one might be asked to relocate to some areas of Africa, emirates or various parts of Asia.

These jobs do require a background in oil and petroleum or some relevant experience in such areas which shall make one eligible for the job. Since these jobs are highly relocating and do involve some risks, so the salary package offered is good enough to justify the job profile. Some of the big firms that are offering good salary and profiles to the deserving candidates include Shell, PETRONAS, schlumberger and many more.

Jobs in the Telecommunication Industry

With the growing needs of people for various communication modes the telecommunication industry is picking up pace. This is one another industry that offers a good package. With the new technologies coming up like the 3G and wimax the companies are looking for people who are well aware of such applications. These jobs are mostly on contract basis. The agreement may be short term or long term depending upon the project.

These jobs offer a good amount of salary and most of them are paying their candidates in USD’s. This is a big option for people interested in telecom industry and who have the knowledge about the various fields like the radio frequency enhancing or other telecommunications aspects like the 3G projects dealing with implementation, planning and optimization of the radio networks. A person dealing with some short term projects of about 3- 6 months can earn between 16,500 USD per month which is close to a figure of MYR 54000

Learn a Foreign Language

Another good option in Malaysia is the industries dealing with the foreign language speaking professionals. These professionals are highly in demand with the organizations who are dealing with various sectors of outsourcing and customer relationships of different companies not only of Malaysia but also internationally.

People who have good command over other languages specially people who are well versed with Japanese, Chinese, Spanish, German and Thai language are paid very well due to the fact that there are only limited people available who have a good hold of these tough languages. Another factor adding on to good salaries is that if people have some background in accounting, IT or business. If you search properly you can find that there is a large number of job vacancies in Malaysia.